Page 29 of The Story of Us
Even at first glance, she could see there was something different about these envelopes. They were thicker than the ones containing the Valentines, more discolored by age. Each one bore the same Waterford address, either in the upper left-hand corner or written larger in the space for the addressee. Jamie recognized all the other addresses as locations in Europe. The dates of the postmarks spanned three years, from 1941 to 1944.
Meow.
Eliot quit grooming himself to paw at the ribbon. Jamie could take a hint, so she untied it and handed it over. The kitty rolled onto his back and batted at the blue satin with his front feet while she opened the first letter.
Then a chill ran up her spine as she unfolded the yellowed paper and began to read.
Dearest,
I know you told me not to write but you also told me to not wait for you while you go fight for our country. But you see, my darling, it is quite impossible for me to let you go. And so Iwillwait for you and give you glimpses of the world you have waiting for you here upon your return…
Chapter Nine
The following day marked thestart of the set-up period for Waterford’s upcoming Valentine’s Day–themed Fire and Ice Festival, and since True Love had become far too busy to leave just one person in charge, Jamie and Lucy decided to close up shop for a little bit after the lunch rush to get a jump on things and move some supplies over to the festival grounds.
Was it easy to push a library cart loaded down with books and signage over bumpy, uneven cobblestones? No, definitely not. But Jamie made the best of it by telling Lucy all about the letters she’d discovered as they wheeled past the bookstore and headed toward the town square.
“They were so in love!” she gushed.
She couldn’t stop thinking about all the intimate words she’d read the night before. She’d pored over the letters for hours with her breath caught in her throat, and by the time she’d gotten to the final one, tears had been streaming down her face.
Lucy frowned. “Who?”
“Mary and Harris—the original owners of the bookstore. I found some of their letters in TheStory of Usbox. Harris broke up with Mary before he was shipped overseas for World War II because he didn’t want her to wait for him.” Sort of like the way that Sawyer had broken up with Jamie before he left Waterford for college, except their story hadn’t ended nearly as happily as Mary and Harris’s. “But she ignored him and kept writing to him anyway.”
What would’ve happened if she’d acted like Mary and written to Sawyer after he’d moved away? She couldn’t shake the nagging question ofwhat if. At the time, she hadn’t even considered fighting for their future together. She’d simply accepted his decision and plunged headfirst into a carton of ice cream. Wasn’t that how heartbreak was supposed to work?
But Harris had gone towar. He hadn’t wanted to tie Mary to him because he’d thought he might die in battle and leave her heartbroken. Sawyer had left to go to school, and she could only guess he’d ended their relationship because he’d wanted to be free to chase after other girls. Really, their situations had been completely different. And if she and Sawyer had been soulmates—if they’d beendestinedto be together, like Harris and Mary—their breakup wouldn’t have stuck. Eventually, they would have found their way back to one another.
Heisback in town, remember?
As if she could forget. Every time she turned around, Sawyer was right there…causing trouble for True Love at every turn.
“Good girl.” Lucy nodded her approval of Mary’s persistence.
“Yeah. Her letters about what was happening in Waterford were what kept him going while he was away.” Sawyer, on the other hand, appeared not to care what had gone on in Waterford after he left. If he cared, he wouldn’t be teaming up with Ridley Development to tear apart everything their town represented. If he cared, he would have come back to Waterford.
He would have come back toher.
A lump formed in her throat all of a sudden, which was ridiculous. Fifteen years had passed since she’d last shed a tear over Sawyer O’Dell, and she had no intention of doing so again.
She swallowed. Hard.
“Nowadays, she’d probably send him texts with some emojis mixed in.” Lucy rolled her eyes as they slowed the library cart to a halt in the festival’s assigned spot for True Love’s booth.
The official kick off for the Fire and Ice Festival wasn’t for another two days, but vendors had already begun setting up for the big Valentine’s-themed celebration. As the business district’s largest community event, it drew artisans and ice sculptors from all over the state.
“So not the same,” Jamie said. An emoji-filled text versus a handwritten love letter? No contest.
Not that she’d been on the receiving end of either lately.
“It sounds romantic.” Lucy sighed.
“Which makes sense for a couple who started a bookstore called True Love.” Much to Jamie’s annoyance, the lump in her throat seemed to double in size. “I mean, wouldn’t that be nice? To have someone want to do something so creative with you like start a bookstore?”
Instead of tearing one down, which was the complete and total opposite.
Lucy looked her up and down. “I thought you were on a romantic hiatus.”
